The most romantic words ever uttered would have to be,
"You go back to sleep, honey. I'll get up and get the kids their breakfast."
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Christmas Joys
Yesterday we spent the day with my parents. We helped my mom cook and hung out until Baagii and Zaya, my 2 Mongolian sisters came home from school (yes, school on Christmas day in Mongolia). When they got in we exchanged and opened presents then sat down to our feast of roast and potatoes and creamed veggies. It was fun and relaxing to just lounge around and enjoy each others' company for the day.
Tonight was our leaders' Christmas party. Actually, it's still going on, but I snuck away for a few minutes to write this post and check email. They're watching a Mongolian comedy on TV and laughing really loud. They're funnier than the comedy if you ask me.
Hetee and I cooked for our leaders (only about 20 people came all together) and after we ate we went ice skating. It was the first time for some of us and, although we were dropping like flies, we had a lot of fun. I have 2 big bruises on my knees and my hips are kind of sore from falling, too. But by the end of our evening I learned to stop without falling on my butt or running into the fence! I would have pictures but the digital camera battery went dead as soon as I got outside.
Tonight was our leaders' Christmas party. Actually, it's still going on, but I snuck away for a few minutes to write this post and check email. They're watching a Mongolian comedy on TV and laughing really loud. They're funnier than the comedy if you ask me.
Hetee and I cooked for our leaders (only about 20 people came all together) and after we ate we went ice skating. It was the first time for some of us and, although we were dropping like flies, we had a lot of fun. I have 2 big bruises on my knees and my hips are kind of sore from falling, too. But by the end of our evening I learned to stop without falling on my butt or running into the fence! I would have pictures but the digital camera battery went dead as soon as I got outside.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Merry Christmas!
First of all, Merry Christmas everyone!
Whew! It's good to finally be back. I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted. Time flies when you're having fun. It flies even faster when you have a budding homeschooler, a toddler and an infant at home!
Also, the last few times I tried to post, the internet was acting up and I could never get past the login page. I'm glad it's ok now.
Not much new going on here except that for the first time in my life, I'm really concerned about the weather. It's been really warm here with almost, get this-- no snow! That's just unheard of for Mongolia. We couldn't even go sledding this year! Don't get me wrong, I don't particularly like snow. I just think it's freaky that we're having such a warm winter, I mean, we're practically in Siberia, for crying out loud! Maybe God just got tired of me bellyaching about the cold for the past 9 years that he decided to take it easy on me. That's kind of scary, too.
Over the past few days I've been overwhelmed by how fast my babies are growing. I noticed that Abi has grown out of her cat phase (crawling around meowing and demanding I give her milk in a bowl) Then Kenny turned 6 months, sat up unassisted and started scooting/crawling. And Nate is writing words, learning songs and memorizing scriptures. He opens doors for me and his little sister and is such a gentleman.
In a way I'm happy they're on the road to independence. But did it have to be so soon?
Enough rambling! I'm off to bed. We have a long day tomorrow with our Christmas service at 11 am and then a concert (people from church participating) at 6 pm.
Whew! It's good to finally be back. I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted. Time flies when you're having fun. It flies even faster when you have a budding homeschooler, a toddler and an infant at home!
Feast your eyes on the chubbiest cheeks in the East!
Also, the last few times I tried to post, the internet was acting up and I could never get past the login page. I'm glad it's ok now.
Not much new going on here except that for the first time in my life, I'm really concerned about the weather. It's been really warm here with almost, get this-- no snow! That's just unheard of for Mongolia. We couldn't even go sledding this year! Don't get me wrong, I don't particularly like snow. I just think it's freaky that we're having such a warm winter, I mean, we're practically in Siberia, for crying out loud! Maybe God just got tired of me bellyaching about the cold for the past 9 years that he decided to take it easy on me. That's kind of scary, too.
Over the past few days I've been overwhelmed by how fast my babies are growing. I noticed that Abi has grown out of her cat phase (crawling around meowing and demanding I give her milk in a bowl) Then Kenny turned 6 months, sat up unassisted and started scooting/crawling. And Nate is writing words, learning songs and memorizing scriptures. He opens doors for me and his little sister and is such a gentleman.
In a way I'm happy they're on the road to independence. But did it have to be so soon?
Enough rambling! I'm off to bed. We have a long day tomorrow with our Christmas service at 11 am and then a concert (people from church participating) at 6 pm.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Just another day...
...in my life.
This morning Hetee and I were at home, minding our business when we got a frantic phone call from a lady from church. She was begging us to come and settle a violent dispute between herself and her 22-year-old daughter. There was screaming in the background.
We got dressed and made our way over there as fast as we could, not knowing exactly what to expect. We had heard a lot about the daughter and her legendary ourbursts of anger. She threw tantrums much like the ones Nate recently outgrew. She even used her mother and 2-year-old son as punching bags, too, I heard.
We arrived at the apartment and the daughter let us in. Both women were on opposite sides of the room, crying. The little boy was sitting timidly on the corner of the bed. I felt my heart break as I noticed a bruise by his left eye. I surveyed the room for knives or other sharp objects I might want to avoid if things got out of hand. There were broken dishes on the floor.
Hetee and I sat down and Hetee asked them to explain what happened. They both just sat there crying silently. Then, all of a sudden they started talking at the same time. It got louder and louder as they called each other names and began to fight again.
As I was sitting there, spitting distance away (don't ask me how I know that), chewing on my thumb nail and wishing the floor would open and swallow me up while at the same time pondering the pros and cons of banging their heads together to make the noise stop, I noticed that Hetee was just sitting there, cool as a cucumber, listening. Why is he letting them go on like that? Why doesn't he make them stop? It's obvious this isn't getting us anywhere!
After what seemed like an hour of yelling- it was actually about 15 minutes, Hetee held up his hands and surprisingly both women immediately fell silent. It was a neat trick! Then he took a deep breath and calmly, magically, supernaturally began counseling them. I sat there, watching in awe as piece by piece he began to tear down the wall these women had built over the past days leading up to the big bang. Never before had I been so grateful for my husband's ability to "fix the problem" as men are typically known to do. He went in like a surgeon and skillfully articulated the problem, made it known to the women and told them how to fix it, according to the Bible.
I wish I could remember what he said that made everything all better. But the truth is I was too wrapped up in the feeling of comfort I had, knowing that I was married to such a smart guy, to pay attention to the details after that. And my tummy was rumbling and making me wonder why on earth I had had only a half cup of coffee and a slice of bread with butter for breakfast. Note to self: if you're going to settle a domestic dispute, pack a lunch.
By the time we had coffee and sweetbreads, everyone was calm and smiling, including the little boy. I offered to take him for a couple days to give the his mom a chance to work things out with her new husband with whom she is also having conflicts, but she declined. I sure hope she can keep her hands to herself.
Well, it's late and I have to turn in. Next time Hetee tries to "fix" my problem instead of just listening, I think I'll be more understanding.
This morning Hetee and I were at home, minding our business when we got a frantic phone call from a lady from church. She was begging us to come and settle a violent dispute between herself and her 22-year-old daughter. There was screaming in the background.
We got dressed and made our way over there as fast as we could, not knowing exactly what to expect. We had heard a lot about the daughter and her legendary ourbursts of anger. She threw tantrums much like the ones Nate recently outgrew. She even used her mother and 2-year-old son as punching bags, too, I heard.
We arrived at the apartment and the daughter let us in. Both women were on opposite sides of the room, crying. The little boy was sitting timidly on the corner of the bed. I felt my heart break as I noticed a bruise by his left eye. I surveyed the room for knives or other sharp objects I might want to avoid if things got out of hand. There were broken dishes on the floor.
Hetee and I sat down and Hetee asked them to explain what happened. They both just sat there crying silently. Then, all of a sudden they started talking at the same time. It got louder and louder as they called each other names and began to fight again.
As I was sitting there, spitting distance away (don't ask me how I know that), chewing on my thumb nail and wishing the floor would open and swallow me up while at the same time pondering the pros and cons of banging their heads together to make the noise stop, I noticed that Hetee was just sitting there, cool as a cucumber, listening. Why is he letting them go on like that? Why doesn't he make them stop? It's obvious this isn't getting us anywhere!
After what seemed like an hour of yelling- it was actually about 15 minutes, Hetee held up his hands and surprisingly both women immediately fell silent. It was a neat trick! Then he took a deep breath and calmly, magically, supernaturally began counseling them. I sat there, watching in awe as piece by piece he began to tear down the wall these women had built over the past days leading up to the big bang. Never before had I been so grateful for my husband's ability to "fix the problem" as men are typically known to do. He went in like a surgeon and skillfully articulated the problem, made it known to the women and told them how to fix it, according to the Bible.
I wish I could remember what he said that made everything all better. But the truth is I was too wrapped up in the feeling of comfort I had, knowing that I was married to such a smart guy, to pay attention to the details after that. And my tummy was rumbling and making me wonder why on earth I had had only a half cup of coffee and a slice of bread with butter for breakfast. Note to self: if you're going to settle a domestic dispute, pack a lunch.
By the time we had coffee and sweetbreads, everyone was calm and smiling, including the little boy. I offered to take him for a couple days to give the his mom a chance to work things out with her new husband with whom she is also having conflicts, but she declined. I sure hope she can keep her hands to herself.
Well, it's late and I have to turn in. Next time Hetee tries to "fix" my problem instead of just listening, I think I'll be more understanding.
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